Know the Combinations

• Knowing the combinations is the key to becoming proficient at solving Kakuro puzzles. Different combinations of numbers add up to make the clue number depending on the number of squares in the clue. For example, a clue number of 13 with two squares has three combinations: 9 and 4; 8 and 5; and 7 and 6. With three squares, there are seven combinations that make up the clue number of 13: 1,3,9; 1,4,8; 1,5,7; 2,3,8; 2,4,7; 2,5,6; and 3,4,6. Becoming familiar with all the possible combinations, or having a chart that shows them, allows you to immediately eliminate the digits not in any of the combinations.